Enlarge ImageRequest to buy this photoMike Munden | DISPATCHThe Crew's Jairo Arrieta , second from right, is mobbed by teammates after scoring the first of his two goals in the first half against the Union on Saturday.

Next game: Sporting Kansas City

Where: Crew Stadium

When: 4 p.m. Sunday

TV: Fox Sports Net

Radio: WTVN-AM (610), WVKO-FM (103.1, in Spanish)

Crew view

Another Crew win bordering on the miraculous. After a road loss to Chicago one week earlier, the
Crew regained its late-game magic with Milovan Mirosevic’s winning goal in the 87th minute. That
makes five straight Crew victories in which the winning goal was scored in the 86th minute or
later, and this one restored the club’s momentum with three games remaining.

Extra help

The win did not come without controversy. Replays showed that Mirosevic was offside when he
scored the winner, but the assistant referee was out of position and didn’t make the call. A Major
League Soccer officiating supervisor told The Dispatch that the referee missed several calls in the
game, including that one, adding that the officiating crew should get a failing grade for the
performance. Either way, it resulted in three crucial points for the Crew.

Playoff picture

The Crew stands almost exactly where it was in the standings before Saturday’s action got under
way: one point behind Houston for the fifth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The
Dynamo also won on Saturday, but fourth-place D.C. United tied Portland 1-1 on the road, allowing
the Crew and Dynamo to gain two points. The Crew now trails United by three points, and the two
teams will meet Oct. 20 at RFK Stadium in a game with major postseason implications.

No O’Rourke

After being given a yellow card in the 61st minute, defensive midfielder Danny O’Rourke will be
on the sideline for the Crew’s game on Sunday because of yellow-card accumulation. The veteran has
started the past eight games after battling various injuries earlier in the season. He likely will
be replaced by Chris Birchall, who sat out three straight games before starting as a right
midfielder against the Union.

Scoring

Forward Jairo Arrieta increased his team-leading goal total to eight with two first-half goals
against the Union that came despite a balky ankle injured in the ninth minute. The injury forced
coach Robert Warzycha to sub Arrieta out of the game earlier than he wanted to, but the forward is
not expected to miss any action. Arrieta already has three multi-goal games in 15 games played with
the Crew..

Personnel

Defender Carlos Mendes could be back this week from a hamstring injury, but fellow defender
Julius James suffered a shoulder injury on Saturday and had to leave the game. Midfielder Dilly
Duka missed his second straight game, but for a different reason. After not making the trip to
Chicago for personal reasons, Duka suffered a right calf injury during practice on Friday.

Birchall back

After seeing no playing time in three straight games, Birchall considered taking his case to the
coaching staff last week. After Saturday’s game, however, Warzycha praised Birchall for his
box-to-box play and fitness level. “I got a few crosses in,” Birchall said. “A few could have been
better, but at this stage, three points, I’m happy with my performance.”

Quotable

“To have (Mirosevic’s late winner) not called offside — I just watched it a couple of times — I’m
amazed. I don’t know what to say. It’s not even close. It’s a heartbreaker that way, for us to
fight that hard and be that brave, then lose that way.” — Union coach John Hackworth